Bears Softball Hosts SIU to Open Conference Play

Missouri State (7-11) vs. Southern Illinois (10-8)
Date	Wednesday, March 16 \| 12:00 & 2:30 p.m.
Location	Killian Stadium \| Springfield, Mo.
Tickets	Free Admission
Follow	ESPN+ (Game 1) \| ESPN+ (Game 2) \| Live Stats \| Twitter
Missouri State	Game Notes (PDF) \| Softball Home Page \| Media Guide
Southern Illinois	Softball Home Page
Up Next	vs. Illinois State (DH) \| March 19 \| 12:00 & 2:30 p.m. Killian Stadium \| Springfield, Mo.

The Starting Lineup - Storylines
?    Missouri State is 7-11 on the season following tournament play to begin the 2022 campaign. The Bears are currently riding a three-game win streak, with wins over Wichita State, SEMO and Iowa last week, as they get ready to begin conference play.. All three of MSU's wins last week came in come-from-behind fashion, including a walk-off victory over the Hawkeyes.
?    Head coach Holly Hesse is in her 34th season at the helm of the Bears program. She ranks second in the MVC in overall career victories with 851 and second in MVC career victories with 361 league wins. Hesse entered the season ranked 22nd among all active NCAA Division I coaches in career victories (851-828-2).
?   Missouri State was picked to finish third in the Missouri Valley Conference this season by the MVC coaches, while D1 Softball pegged the Bears to place second in the MVC and make an NCAA Tournament appearance in the preseason. Hesse has led MSU to the NCAA Tournament five times in her career, with the Bears' last appearance coming in 2011.
?   The Bears went 16-6 in conference play last season, recording their most MVC wins since 2018 when they went 17-8. MSU placed third in the MVC regular season in 2021 and advanced to the MVC Tournament semifinals before being knocked off by UNI, 3-2, on a walk-off single that ended the Bears 2021 campaign. Last season against the Salukis, Missouri State picked up two victories in Carbondale, 4-0 and 4-1.
?     Alex Boze (Sr., Swansea, Ill.) had a career night against Wichita State on March 9, recording the first three-homer game by a Bear on record, while tying the MVC record for homers in a game and breaking the Killian Stadium record.Her five RBI were also the most by a Bear since 2016. Boze is ranks 3rd in the nation with a 1.118 slugging percentage and 10th nationally in on-base percentage (.591). She leads the Missouri Valley conference in batting average (.471), slugging percentage, on-base percentage, OPS (1.709) and home runs (6). She earned MVC Player of the Week on March 15 after batting .556 (5-for-9) last week with three home runs, seven RBI and a 1.667 slugging percentage as the Bears went 3-0 on the week.
?   Fifth-year senior Steffany Dickerson (Sr., Oklahoma City, Okla.) earned all three of MSU's victories last week, raising her season total to six of MSU's seven wins on the year. Last week, Dickerson pitched a team-high 15.2 innings and struck out 15 batters, and she helped her own cause against the Hawkeyes by hitting a leadoff double in the bottom of the seventh inning to set the Bears up for the walk-off victory a few batters later. For her performances in the circle, Dickerson was named MVC Pitcher of the Week on March 15. She leads MSU in ERA (3.37), wins (6), complete games (3), innings pitched (54.0), strikeouts (47) and opponent batting average (.266). Dickerson's six wins rank 3rd in the MVC, while her 47 strikeouts are good for 6th in the conference.
?     The Bears faced a challenging non-conference schedule so far in 2022, as they have take on 8 Power Five squads with 10 games against those opponents. Four teams on Missouri State's schedule were ranked in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Preseason Top 25 (#4 Oklahoma State, #9 Arkansas, #21 Arizona State and #25 Wichita State).
?     The coaching staff of Hesse, Sue Frederick and Beth Perine has been together since the 1996 season, making them the longest-tenured staff in the nation.

Series History
Missouri State is 51-59 all-time against Southern Illinois, including a 25-16 record in Springfield. The Bears have won the last three matchups versus the Salukis, including both games last season in Carbondale by scores of 4-0 and 4-1. The first game of the three-game win streak against SIU came in April 2019, as MSU defeated the Salukis 2-1 in Springfield.

Bears Softball Hosts SIU to Open Conference Play

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Players Mentioned

Alex Boze

Steffany Dickerson

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